Understanding the fundamental properties of PrOx based oxygen electrodes through ab-initio and electroch

Thesis topic details

General information

Organisation

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.

Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.

The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
  

Reference

SL-DES-25-0338  

Thesis topic details

Category

Technological challenges

Thesis topics

Understanding the fundamental properties of PrOx based oxygen electrodes through ab-initio and electrochemical modelling for solid oxide cells application

Contract

Thèse

Job description

Solid Oxide Cells (SOCs) are reversible and efficient energy-conversion systems for the production of electricity and green hydrogen. Nowadays, they are considered as one of the key technological solutions for the transition to a renewable energy market. A SOC consists of a dense electrolyte sandwiched between two porous electrodes. To date, the large-scale commercialization of SOCs still requires the improvement of both their performances and lifetime. In this context, the main limitations in terms of efficiency and degradation of SOCs have been attributed to the conventional oxygen electrode in La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3. To overcome this issue, it has recently been proposed to replace this material with an alternative electrode based on PrOx. Indeed, this material has a high electro-catalytic activity for the oxygen reduction and good transport properties. The performance of cells incorporating this new electrode is promising and might enable to reach the targets required for large-scale industrialization (i.e. -1.5A/cm2 at 1.3V at 750°C and a degradation rate of 0.5%/kh). However, it has been shown that PrOx undergoes phase transitions depending on the cell operating conditions. The impact of these phase transitions on the electrode properties and on its performance and durability are still unknown. Thus, the purpose of the PhD is to gain an in-depth understanding of the physical properties for the different PrOx phases in order to investigate their role in the electrode reaction mechanisms. The study will contribute to validate whether PrOx based electrodes are good candidates for a new generation of SOCs and help to identify an optimized electrode using a methodology combining ab-initio calculation with electrochemical modelling.

University / doctoral school

Ingénierie - Matériaux - Environnement - Energétique - Procédés - Production (IMEP2)
Université Grenoble Alpes

Thesis topic location

Site

Grenoble

Requester

Position start date

01/10/2025

Person to be contacted by the applicant

HARTMANN Cintia cintia.hartmann@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DTCH//LES
17 avenue des Martyrs
38054 Grenoble cedex 9
0438782160

Tutor / Responsible thesis director

LAURENCIN Jerôme jerome.laurencin@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DTCH
17 avenue des Martyrs
38054 Grenoble cedex 9
0438782210

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